Fire-escape



W. WISE. TIRE 'ESGAPB.

(No Model.)

WITNESSES IWBNIOR.

ATTORNEYS.

n PETERS. Phomumo uen Waslvingmn. u C.

UNlTED Status PATENT @rrrcn.

WILLIAM \VISE, OF MEDYVAY, OHIO.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 295,320, dated March 18, 1884.

Application filed March 12,1883. (No model.)

Fire-Escapes, o f which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of fire-escapes adapted to be l'noved from place to place and to be set in front of a burning building, to raise to the windows thereof some means of escape for persons therein; and it consists in the construction and combination of parts, forming a portable fire-escape, hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the ac .companying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of my fire-escape raised ready for use, and Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of the same before raisin A represents a tube of sheet metal, to which is secured a suitable base, B, of suflicient area to prevent the weight of the device from sinkin g into the ground. GD E are smaller tubes, one placed within the other. The. lower end of each tube is provided with an exterior flange, fitting the interior of the neXtlarge-r tube, and

the upper end of each tube is provided with an interior flange fitting the exterior of the next smaller tube. On these flanges the seot-ions of the tubes are steadied to slide, forming a telescopic mast. The upper edge of each tube, except the innermost one, is provided with one or more pulleys, a, and each inner tube, except the smallest one, has fixed to it one or more similar pulleys, b, at about onequarter of its height from its lower end. Over the upper pulleys, a, and under the lower pulleys, b, passes a rope, 'c', which-is secured at one end to the smallest tube F at a point, (2, corresponding to the position of the pulleys b on the other tubes.v The other end of the rope c is wound upon a Windlass, G. From each of the pulleys a the rope passes down through a hole in the inner flange of that section around the lower pulley, l), of the next inner sect-ion, thence upward over the next pulley c at its top, then down again through a hole in the flange, and so on until it reaches the point (I on the inner tube,where it is secured. When the rope c is wound on the Windlass, the inner section, F, will be first raised to its full heightthat is, about three quarters of its length. Then. the next section will be raised, carrying up the inner section fully extended. .So each outer section will follow the next inner one upward until section A is the only one remain ing on the ground and the mast is raised. By so placing the lower pulleys, b, the sections cannot be drawn out their full length, enoughabout one-(1n arter, as herein described-being left in to preserve the stiffness of the mast when extended. The first two or three sections will be raised easily; but each succeeding section is heavier than its predecessor, and its weight is added to that of all that have been raised so I provide other windlasses, H I, and other ropes, 7 2 attached to the lower sect-ions, whereby more power may be applied to assist in raising them. The rope It may be attached to the third section and rope t to the fifth, or otherwise, as the case requires. Thus I supply means for applying increased power as the weight increases, and yet these extra windlasses are held in reserve when only the upper sections are raised, and do not entail unnecessary labor or attention when not needed. To the top of the mast I attach an arm, W, or chain, extending to one side,aud provided with a double-pointed hook, (a, at its end. The purpose of this arm is to reach into a window and secure its hool; to the inside of the windowsill, to steady the top of the mast. As a further measure of security, stay-lines J are attached to the mast midway. To prevent the hook at from rocking, I provide arm W with a cross-bar, y, to rest on the window-sill. At the head of the mast I attach a pulley, over which a rope, 7r, passes, to raise and lower the escapecar L. This car is made of sheet-iron,

andit is provided with a lid to prevent the axle enough to receive trunnions M. Thesetimbers are then raised until the mast swings freely, when it is turned to a horizontal posi= tion, and the timbers are slid forward until the mast lies on the truck, when it is ready for transportation. WVith each mast several arms or chains are applied, and to each one a pulley is secured, on which a rope may run, to raise and lower an escape-car, so that by once raising the mast and swaying it from side to side several windows may be supplied with means of escape for the occupants, all to be at Work at the same time.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, and wish to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination, with a tubular mast having three or more telescoping sect-ions, of a rope attached to the inner section, pulleys on all the other sections, over which said rope runs, and means for winding said rope, in combination with another rope attached to same section outside the inner one, pulleys over which the second rope runs on sections outside of the one to which this second rope is action of both ropes Working together indev pendent of each other.

2. A sheet-metal fire-escape car having a lid completely closing its top and a bottom in the shape of a complete cone inverted, substantially as shown and described.

WILLIAM WISE.

Witnesses HENRY M. HUBER, CHRISTIAN KAUFFMAN. 

